NASCAR Cup Series Tag

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer If it wasn’t for a speeding penalty on the final green flag pit stop, Daniel Suarez’s day could’ve been different. During Sunday’s Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Suarez had a top-10 run going. Rather than being one of a couple of cars leading during pit stops again, Suarez showed tremendous pace. More so, during the tail end of Stage 2 where he got Trackhouse Racing’s first stage point in its team’s run thus far. He wasn’t done with just a 10th stageRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor On more than a few occasions in his NASCAR Cup Series career, Kyle Larson has dominated a race to the level he did on Sunday at Atlanta Motor Speedway only to fall short in the end. Leading 269 laps and winning the first two stages of the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500, Larson seemed to be on cruise control toward his second win of the season, but as the laps wound down and tire management came into play, a confluence of events would keep Larson fromRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service You can call Ryan Blaney “The Spoiler.” With a pass for the lead with eight laps left in Sunday’s Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Blaney took the air out of an otherwise dominating performance by Kyle Larson, who had to settle for second place after winning the first two stages and leading 269 of 325 laps. “Gosh, we had a great long-run car all day,” Blaney said after climbing from his No. 12 Team Penske Ford. “It took us aRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor A year after the COVID-19 pandemic threw the brakes on the 2020 season, the NASCAR Cup Series returns to the epicenter of where it all came to a screeching halt – Atlanta Motor Speedway. The series would return to the 1.5-mile quad oval later in the year to make up the rescheduled Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500, albeit without spectators. Fast forward to this Sunday and NASCAR’s best will have a limited number of fans in the stands to cheer them on as they tackle Atlanta’sRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer NASCAR Camping World Truck Series veteran and dirt ace Stewart Friesen becomes the latest dirt specialist that’ll run at Bristol. Spire Motorsports announced Tuesday that he’ll will pilot the No. 77 Halmar International Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE next Sunday. Friesen joins the likes of Chris Windom, Shane Golobic and Mike Marlar that’ll be considered as outsiders. However, Friesen has spent the past several years in NASCAR where he’s won twice in 2019, including the final race at Eldora. The 37-year-old stated it’s a dream come trueRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Inspection problems were the name of the game for Hendrick Motorsports drivers William Byron, Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson. The trio had to work from the rear of the field to score top-10s in the Instacart 500 at Phoenix Raceway. Following the Xfinity Series race Saturday, NASCAR reported that Larson and Byron failed pre-race tech twice. Therefore, relinquishing their second and 10th starting spots. Sunday morning rolled along and Elliott, who won last November, was also sent to the rear. He was scheduled to roll offRead More

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service Martin Truex Jr. overcame an early-race brush with the wall and took the lead on the final restart with 25 laps remaining to earn his first victory of 2021 and first in 31 career starts at Phoenix Raceway. Truex’s No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota ultimately held off Joey Logano’s No. 22 Penske Racing Ford by a convincing 1.698-seconds for the win in the Instacart 500. The 2017 NASCAR Cup Series champion Truex took the race lead from the outside on a bold restartRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor This time last year, Phoenix served as the last race before the COVID-19 pandemic took hold across the sports landscape, sending all of us, NASCAR included into our new normal. A year later, with the effects of the pandemic still being felt, the NASCAR Cup Series heads to the Arizona desert to take on Phoenix Raceway and Sunday’s Instacart 500, in what could be a preview of the championship race when the 2021 season wraps up at the one-mile oval in November. Through the first fourRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Last Sunday’s Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway was a race to forget for Stewart-Haas Racing. This includes Kevin Harvick, who was the highest-finishing SHR entry with an appalling 20th. Harvick’s teammates Chase Briscoe, Cole Custer and Aric Almirola also struggled, finishing 21st, 25th and 38th respectively. When it’s a race where no SHR car led a lap nor end up on the lead lap, questions pile up. More so for Harvick, who led the field to the green flag. Even with the concerns, heplansRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Compared to most races since the COVID-19 pandemic began, Kyle Busch had a progressive afternoon at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, finishing third in Sunday’s Pennzoil 400. Busch’s road towards his first top-five of 2021 was a grind as he battled a super tight No. 18 Ethel M Chocolates Toyota Camry. Things began finally clicking was the final stage where he was on the move making progress while others struggled gaining ground. It certainly paid dividends with his result, but there’s still significant room for improvement. “WeRead More